ark, get

ple but brutal: sprint from the pack's main building to a mahogany tree deep in the forest, retrieve the red cloth tied to its highe

footsteps of my six opponents-well, five wolves and me. A g

"One connection with your wolf, and yo

into his wolf form-pulls ahead slightly, his dark brown fur sleek and shimmering in the sun. I c

" I growl, my compe

lur as she gains ground. She nips at my heels, the

I'll pluck them out to use as bracelets," I snap,

beating me in a race: Ken and Kira, the inseparable twins who've been my best friends since childhood. We've done everything

've already shift

they call a late bloomer. My wolf is there-I can feel her growling inside me, her presence simmering just beneath the

im to say; he shifted perfectly on his 18th birthday. I've tried everything-meditati

n't need to shift.

long shadows across the trail. This is where my plan co

ers into the path, colliding with David. The pale blue wolf stumb

in distress. Selena loves puppies more than life itself-seriously, she once skipped training to rescue a stray-and can't b

more

dows, his role complete. That

mind-link, her voice sharp and accu

cing glare of her amber eyes. Even

nd teasing. 'You're a genius! That was Douglas,

,' I snap, refusing to l

high on a branch, far out of reach for a wolf. She skids to a stop, her

er of them has mastered it yet-it's not easy for newly awak

nch myself upward. My fingers brush against the cloth, and I yank it free. It ri

ut to land, Kir

my skull, and for a moment, everything is blurry. I hear the faint growls and snarls

mething insi

e. Kira freezes, her ears flattening as she whines and backs away. Her tail tucks between her l

n it. My instincts take over, and I snatch the cloth from Kira's paws

ur in my peripheral vision. The forest blurs around me as I sprint bac

p the torn cloth at his feet and

he mutters, his brown eyes

g to catch my breath. As I speak, I feel my wolf retreat, the

his sandy curls. "I suppose I did. A

eria's that way," I tell him, patting his shoulder a

ver. "Evil!" she declares, but the smile tuggi

rinning. "Snookums, you amaze

to see it coming," I tease, shov

as always. It's wha

mutter, roll

's a little confusing when it's only been recorded that only alphas possess that trait. Dad thinks it's just

hoots through my stomach, doubling me over.

n

t

ninth of

oan, clutching my abdo